Saturday 5 June 2010

Jesus Is Watching

The other morning whilst we were warming up, Bones said: 'After warm-up let's have a mime workshop.' I thought he was taking the piss and was about to do my comedy Marcel Marceau impression. You know the one, you've probably done it yourself... big face and silly hands? Anyway, the point is, he was serious, and rightly so. My crap attitude just underlines how I am still not really embracing the Mime; and how much I am in denial about the physical precision that is needed in this show.

We open in 6 days time. This is both exhilarating and terrifying in equal measure. We went up to Friston Forest yesterday, to erect the tent. See Below. Our last week of rehearsals is outdoors. Thank Goodness! The Methodist Hall is cold and smells of religion. Our Director and writer is a lapsed Evangelist and as a result there are some delightfully blasphemous elements to the show, and I can't help feeling that at Methodist Central Jesus is looking over my shoulder and tutting loudly.

Jesus watching over the choreography. L to R Bones, Sax Chick, The Choreographer, Basso. The poster reads: I alone know the plans I have for you. Plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster. Thank God for that.



One of the brilliant things about working for the circus is that Babies and Dogs are welcome. I am Odd-Mother to Baby T, offspring of Basso and The Choreographer. Breaktime, and Baby T, Dog and I share a banana.



Unpacking the tent at Friston. How many actors does it take to erect a tent?



Erm.... How does it go?



Looking good.



The Team L to R: Sax Chick, Dog, Basso, Lallymaggoo, Fiddle Boy, Bones, Awol.



As you can see, the tent took us a couple of tries and about an hour to get right. Apparently it goes up in about 20 minutes when you get the hang of it. I bloody hope so! In addition to this we have to put up a stage, a fence, position the pageant wagon and cover our faces in white make-up... each time we do the show.

Sax Chick and I go back years. We've done lots of shows together, some great, some not so great. We've toured the arse-end of Germany in a van with some very smelly boys. We've run naked through the Coventry Belgrade theatre. We've laughed, we've cried, we've held each-others hair whilst we were sick but never have we done anything quite like this show. "Stage Management!?"

Nope. we're it.

Lx

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